Tag: Mitochondria

In GeroScience, a large team of researchers, including João Pedro de Magalhães, has described a hundred currently unsolved problems in the field. Finding the right questions Understanding the fundamental nature of aging has been a problem since people first endeavored to live longer, to the point that finding the right questions can matter more than...

Scientists have discovered that directly reducing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) at their source in astrocytes, mitochondrial complex III, improves neuronal health and significantly increases lifespan in a mouse model of Alzheimer’s [1]. Dangerous species Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are short-lived, highly reactive oxygen-containing molecules such as superoxide and hydrogen peroxide that are...

Scientists have discovered a possible mechanism behind age-related inflammation. It involves wrong building blocks being incorporated into mitochondrial DNA during replication and can be countered by adding the correct ones [1]. Too similar to bacteria Mitochondria, the cells’ energy-producing organelles, are considered to have developed from bacteria that once entered an ancient cell and stayed,...

Scientists have demonstrated that injecting healthy mitochondria either systematically or directly into the tumor microenvironment boosts the efficiency of a standard anti-cancer therapy [1]. Mitochondria’s dual role in lung cancer While not the most prevalent type of cancer, lung cancer causes more deaths than any other. Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) accounts for 85% of...

A new study demonstrates that novel gene-editing tools can correct disease-causing mutations in mitochondrial DNA in primary human cells [1]. Smaller editing tools needed Genome-editing tools such as CRISPR were one of the greatest scientific breakthroughs of this century. However, they are only good for editing nuclear DNA. Mitochondria, the energy-producing organelles, have their own...

Clonal hematopoiesis, a condition linked to numerous age-related disorders, can be caused by overachieving mitochondria, and it may be susceptible to drugs such as MitoQ and metformin [1]. The attack of the clones The human body constantly produces vast numbers of blood cells from hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs). Over time, some HSPCs may...